Deep in the Depths of Tartarus
by Megasis
Summary: **SPOILER ALERT** If you haven't read The Mark of Athena yet by Rick Riordan please do not continue. The last time we saw Percy and Annabeth they were falling into the deep dark abyss of Tatarus, but what happened after that? This story is my idea of the hardships and tortures Percy and Annabeth had to endure before finding the light and escaping the darkness.
1. Prologue

It was a stormy night. Lightning flashed, lighting up the night sky as thunder cracked overhead. The wicked black sea tossed and attacked the shoreline, spitting seawater high into the air as it crashed onto the rock barriers. Winds roared and snapped trees as if they were toothpicks. Conditions like this had only one explanation: the Gods were angry.

Among those Gods was Poseidon, and he was fuming. He sat in his throne along with the others, having watched the events unfold with his son down below. The only thing at this moment that could possibly be more immense than his anger was the fear inside him that he held for his son. "We can't just wait around and let them resolve this themselves…"

"And what do you propose we do, brother?" Zeus was not in a pleasant mood either. It was forbidden to get involved with their children back on earth and it wasn't any different for Poseidon even though he apparently had other ideas. "There is nothing you can do-"

"There is plenty I could do! But there isn't much time! The longer we wait the less chance my son has of survival, and I will not wait around for his death!"

"SILENCE!" Zeus brought down his fist upon the table and another crash of thunder echoed about the room, shaking the marble floor beneath them. "We will not get involved in this! That would include getting involved with Hades and I will not be owing my lowly brother any favors! Doubtful he would help us anyway. This is for the little demigods to figure out. They shall think of this as another quest… a dangerous quest. One to challenge their capabilities. It will be good for them."

"This is no challenge. My son does not deserve a punishment meant for Titans! He has no chance! You know even we wouldn't stand a great chance in Tartarus… how can you expect him to endure it, you coward-!"

"Be careful with your words brother. If there has to be war it should not be among us. What I say is my final decision. The demigods are on their own." He rose then and turned swiftly, his cloak swishing around him as he made his way out of the court room.

Poseidon was furious and was about to bark out another comment when he felt a hand on his shoulder. It was enough to silence the bitter words about to come out and he looked back to find Athena at his side, her fierce blue eyes concerned, but staying intelligent as always. "Cease your angry words, Poseidon. They will do you no good." She removed her hand and took a couple steps away from him as if she were going to leave, but instead she paused and turned back to him. She was silent, waiting for the others to leave until it was only him and her.

"Athena… I don't recall the last time you speaking kind words to me," he reached up and ran his fingers slowly along the dark hair of his beard, his own deep ocean blue eyes finding her, weary of her purpose.

Athena's expression was unreadable. She only stared at him with a hard look and stayed silent as if she were lost for words, but soon enough she spoke. "Neither do I. However, you will listen to me now. In other circumstances I would not care of your troublesome child, but my daughter is down there as well. I want her back just as much as you want Perc-"

"Troublesome? If I recall, it was my son that tried to save your daughter. If he had not tried he would be safe and it would be _only_ your daughter down in Tartarus," Poseidon snapped, the color in his eyes brightening, the different blues within his irises seeming to intertwine and mix slowly like a whirlpool.

Athena's delicate eyebrows furrowed as he own silvery eyes flashed dangerously. "I see where your son gets his smart mouth. Anyhow, I'm trying to help the both of us. If we want our children back alive we're going to have to work together. Do you not agree?"

Poseidon was silent for a long time as his eyes observed her, looking for any reason why he shouldn't trust her, but he was surprised to find out that he really couldn't find one. "You want to help me?" He questioned.

"You could call it that. I want my daughter back. And she more than likely won't go anywhere without your son. So, just happens you get something out of the deal as well. You're lucky my daughter is part a fool to love your son." She said a little bitterly, but soon the despair was back in her features. "I'm worried, Poseidon. We really don't have much time and honestly I don't know how we're going to get them out, but I'm with you. I will not stand around and wait for my little bird to die."

Poseidon bit back the bitter comments and looked down at the marbled floor, not know what else to do but to confide in this goddess who he has been in a feud with for as long as he could remember. "So, looks like we're in agreement for once." If he wasn't mistaken, when he glimpsed up at her he saw a hint of a grin on Athena's beautiful rose-colored lips.

"Looks like." She confirmed.

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_Hello my readers. This is just getting started don't you worry we'll get to Percy and Annabeth eventually ;) I remember finishing Mark of Athena about a week or so after it came out back in November and that book had one of he biggest cliff hangers in history I swear. It made me so antsy and I didn't think I could wait until the following October for the next book to come out. Anyhow, I've been doing a lot of thinking about how the next book will be and even though it really makes me sad I don't think Riordan is going to have a Percy or Annabeth point of view. So that's what sort of inspired me to do my own thing and how I would picture it. It's going to be a bit dark for Percy Jackson, but I hope someone will find it enjoyable. I'll have fun writing it anyway. But anyhow I'll get started on the first chapter right away and I hope you will all stick around to read it ;3_


	2. Chapter 1

_Her fingers throbbed and ached as she clung to the ragged edge of the cliff, her feet dangling over the edge of the abyss. Her heart hammered in her chest, her breath nothing but short gasps. Her fingers soon became slick with sweat and she slowly started to lose her grip. Just when she though she couldn't hang on any longer, he was there with his strong cool hands on hers. She looked up to find sea blue eyes looking down into hers, and soon enough the hammering in her chest became a flutter. _

"_I've got you… don't worry-" But then, the cliff started to crumble beneath him as well and they were falling, falling, long enough for a short scream to leave her lips, but before the darkness could envelope them, she felt a jolt and they now were suspended in midair. She looked up to see the love of her life clinging to a sort of root that was extended out only but a couple feet from the side of the cliff, his face scrunched in what could have been pain, his fingers turning white from the strain of holding up the both of them. "Percy…you have to let me go…" She gasped, his hand tight around her own, causing her pain. "Please… Percy please…" She begged, tears squeezing from her eyes. She couldn't be responsible for his death. She just couldn't. _

"_No." He breathed, the bright blue of his eyes looking down upon her, a despairing look in his eyes. "No, Annabeth, I won't let you go." He gasped as his fingers slipped down a few inches on the root, his teeth gritted in frustration. "Whatever happens… we'll be together." _

_Annabeth looked up at Percy, a frightened look in her eyes, but that slowly started to go away. Her fingers slowly tightened around his, her trembling lips upturning the slightest in a shaky grin. "We'll be together…" She repeated, Percy's eyes staying on her as he let go and his arms moved about her as they plummeted down until the darkness swallowed them up…_

Annabeth awoke with a jolt, her cheek pressed against cold hard ground. A soft groan left her lips as her fingers reached to the crown of her head which throbbed constantly. Upon opening her eyes, all she could see was darkness, but after allowing her eyes a few minutes to adjust she could pick out shapes and outlines. There were jagged chunks of something all around her, which she figured were pieces of the floor that had fallen down here from above. She and Percy were just lucky nothing had fallen on top of them after they landed down here… wait… _Percy. _

"Percy?" Her voice was nothing but a croak and she began to wonder just how long she had been out cold. "Percy!" She tried again, but there was no response. Her wide panicked eyes scanned what she could see of the room, starting to search on her hands and knees as she tried to find anything that would give her a clue of Percy's location. Soon enough, her eyes picked out a different sort of shape on the floor. The hope was enough for her to scramble over and upon reaching it her fingers grasped soft material and warmth beneath. "Oh gods… Percy…" She gasped as she turned his body over, it being nothing but a rag doll. "Percy please… seaweed brain you have to wake up!" Her fingers gently cupped his cheeks as her thumbs slowly stroked his cheekbones. Leaning down, she pressed her ear to his chest and heard the deep thrum of his heart beating. Oh, thank the gods. She took a deep breath to calm herself and leaned down, lightly pressing a kiss to his forehead as her fingers brushed the dark locks back from his eyes. "I'll take care of you, Percy. I promise I won't let anything happen to you."

She was surprised as she heard a soft noise of pain his lips and soon enough his eyes fluttered open. They looked a little clouded, like he was dazed and confused, but she was just glad that he was conscious. "Oh, Percy, thanks the gods are you alright?" She asked urgently, her eyes and fingers moving over him relentlessly as they searched for anything that could be wrong with him. However, he soon reached up with his hand and took her fingers in his own, making her stop and look at him for a moment, trying to calm her down as she seemed a little frantic.

"I'm fine, Annabeth." He slowly started to sit up, a dull throb in the back of his head as he did so. "Are you alright?" His bright blue eyes seemed to almost glow in the darkness, easily cutting through to find hers.

"I'm okay." She reassured him before tilting her head up and staring at the space overhead, almost expecting to see some sort of light in the distance which would be the hole in the cavern they fell through. However, there was no such luck. It gave her a sort of sick feeling in her gut as it almost seemed to be confirmation that they were indeed stuck down here with no way out.

Thinking about what she and Percy had just lived through was enough to make her breath shorten, her throat tighten, and tears sting at the back of her eyes. It only reminded her that this was only the beginning and that they had much more waiting for them in the depths of the dark. Hearing her gasp for breath, Percy moved quickly to put his strong arms around her and pull her into his chest for comfort, hoping that he could give her a sense of security. "Shh… it's okay Annabeth. We'll be okay. I'll make sure of that. I'm not going to let anything hurt you."

"Percy…" Annabeth curled into his warmth and let him comfort her, but she still had many negative thoughts running through her mind. She wasn't stupid and Percy knew that. She knew what was down here and Tartarus and how it kept some of the most notorious villains, known to the gods, in captivity. If Percy thought it was going to be easy to stay alive down here… he was wrong.

She didn't know how long they stayed like that, she in his lap with his fingers slowly brushing through her golden tangles of hair, but soon enough she felt him move beneath her, starting to stand. We need to start moving. We aren't going to find the exit by sitting around." He kept his arm around her waist though, keeping her close. "But stay close." He warned and Annabeth planned on doing so. She was done being weak. Now was the time to bring out the mighty warrior running through her veins.

Annabeth's ears picked up the soft rustle of Percy's fingers running along the side of the cavern, following it. He figured that there had to be a part in the wall that would allow them a way through and thankfully, there was, but unfortunately it didn't seem to be getting any lighter. Soon, the path opened up into another large cavern, leaving Percy a little more than lost. He took a few hesitant steps into the darkness, but there was a growing sense of unease in the pit of his stomach, something that told him he was about to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. "Annabeth…" He whispered before he heard it. A distant cracking noise sounded, and as it grew louder and more prominent he felt the ground beneath their feet start to quake.

"Percy…!" Annabeth gasped and stumbled into a rough wall of the cavern, her hand slipping out of his as he in turn stumbled in the opposite direction, catching himself on jagged rock. "Annabeth!" Percy yelled over the rumble that was slowly starting to sound more like a roar. Then, in a deafening crack, the floor split in two and bright molten rock oozed up between the crack and slowly crept along, melting anything in its path.

"Percy, what do we do?!" She screamed as the cavern shook more monstrous than any time before, bringing her to her knees and having to brace her hands on either side of her. Then, it went from bad to worse. The crack widened with another deafening crack and molten glowing liquid spewed up into the air as arms the side of tree trunks burst from below, long spindly fingers wiggling and finally bracing themselves on either side of the crack, the large creature slowly lifting itself up from the depths, its eyes glowing red and its body seeming to be made of the glowing molten rock it appeared out of. A deep roar shook the caverns, its jaws opening wide showing off its black jagged teeth as its roar slowly turned into a low rumble of a laugh.

"Never thought I'd see the day the son of the sea god made his way down to these depths." The voice was as jagged as the being it came out of, if that's what you called it. It looked more like a sort of demon to Annabeth, as it was more than ten times their size and didn't resemble anything human that she knew of. Annabeth's eyes quickly darted to Percy across the way who seemed as speechless as she was. The demon's laughter shook the cavern once more as it lowered itself down almost to the point it was eyelevel with Percy, but it still towered over him. "What's wrong little demigod? Scared? Well… you should be." Before Annabeth could do anything, the creature reached out with a massive clawed hand and snatched Percy up; his yells of agony easily reaching her ears.

"Percy!" She screamed and, without thinking, ran after the creature. She didn't even have a weapon at hand, but all she knew was that she couldn't stand by and watch as Percy died. "Put him down or-"

Then, she was flying through the air after the creature whacked her with a massive hand and she hit the opposite wall with a crack, slumping down onto the hard floor of the cavern dazed and confused. She thought she distantly heard Percy's cry of her name, but it was hard to hear with the constant ringing in her ears. A warm flow of liquid oozed slowly down the right side of her face and her body stung and ached where the creature had touched her, the smell of burnt flesh in the air. "Perc…" She wheezed and tried to sit up, fighting through the pulses of sharp jabs in her head and back. Her eyes slowly focused to find the glow of the demon across the cavern and soon anger was flowing through her once more, giving her enough strength to stand, but that's as far as she get because, quicker than she could blink, the demon appeared beside her with Percy in hand.

"I believe you were in the middle of threatening me, daughter of Athena." He chuckled and she thought she saw smoke dancing out of the dark pit of its nostrils. "Go on, I dare you."

Annabeth's lips trembled as she tried to think of something to say, but she figured it was probably smarter to keep her mouth shut.

"Good girl. Your mother did give you some of her smarts." The demon straightened then, looking down over her with Percy still in hand. "Your good behavior deserves a reward, don't you think?" He took a step or so back and then, more gently than Annabeth thought possible, he laid Percy down on the cavern floor where he stayed.

"Perc…" Annabeth gasped and, even though it hurt like hell, she started at a run over to where he lay. She should have saw it coming, should have saw the malice in the creatures red eyes, but she had made a mistake in trusting anything this demon did. The creature struck out easily, stabbing its claws into the earth conveniently right where Percy lay. It had played them, or rather, Annabeth. It could have killed Percy at any moment, and her as well, but for some reason it was toying with her…

"NO!" Annabeth screamed and ran toward where she last saw Percy, and surely enough, as the creature retracted its claws from the ground, Percy was there, lying motionless on the ground. "No no no no…" She went to him, shaking fingers extended to touch him as she fell to her knees at his side. From what she could see, only one of the creature's claws had punctured Percy, but it did plenty of damage. The one massive claw left a massive wound in Percy's middle where it was constantly spitting out blood and already leaving a pretty massive puddle beneath him. His eyes fluttered as if he were struggling to stay awake and that only further enduced Annabeth's mind to panic. "No, Percy you have to stay with me we… I'll get you to water and then you can heal and…" One of his hands reached shakily to hers on his chest; his fingers brushed hers slowly as he beckoned her close, his lips moving as if to speak, but his voice was nothing but a whisper.

"I'm… sorry…" He choked out, blood spurting from his lips in the process and Annabeth had to hold back the burning tears with everything she had as she shook her head, quickly reaching up with her fingers and wiping away the blood from his lips.

"Shh… don't be sorry, Percy. Please don't be sorry…" She bit her lip hard and leaned down to gently press a kiss to the corner of his mouth as her fingers pushed back his dark locks. "I love you, Perc… please don't die you can't die you're not suppose to die…"

"I'm so… sorry…" He gasped out again, his usual sea blue eyes starting to dim until the light was no longer there and his chest ceased to move. Annabeth watched with with her wide silver eyes as if she couldn't accept that he was gone, that he had left her. She had just gotten him back…

"No Percy no…." She sobbed and found herself lost of all strength, falling beside his body and into his blood, the tears streaming down her cheeks hot and relentless. She couldn't do this without him… Her eyes closed tightly, thinking this was all just a bad dream and that perhaps when she opened her eyes once more, Percy would be in her arms, alive and well, but no matter how tight she clung to him and how deeply she wished, she would not feel his heart beating beneath her fingers, or the warmth of her arms around her, or the sweet taste of sea salt on his lips ever again. Percy was dead. She had failed him.

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_Hello fellow readers, please review and make comments I'd love to hear your thoughts :)_


	3. Chapter 2

"Come quickly." Athena dashed as silent as a shadow down the paths of Olympus and Poseidon was having a hard time keeping up with the goddess.

"What's the rush?" Poseidon asked, knowing that it was more important for them to be quiet than it was for them to be quick or that's what he thought anyway.

"Our proposal cannot wait. Our children's lives depend on it. So, we cannot afford to miss our only way into the Underworld." She swiftly made her way to the top of the marble staircase that would lead to her home on Olympus: The Parthenon, looking almost exactly like the one on earth except much bigger and more majestic, but the humans did a considerably well job for their time period and with the tools they had available. She was proud of her people.

Her heels clicked on the marble as she made her way across the floor and through the columns to her right. Upon entering this new room, Poseidon realized that he wouldn't have expected Athena's room to look any different. The walls stretched up to the ceiling to end in a dome and every square inch of it was filled with some sort of book or another, but it was all very beautiful. No doubt it was all carefully planned inside that brainiac mind of hers and it was then that he could easily see where her daughter got her love of architecture from.

"So, how exactly do we plan on entering Hades realm? I mean he doesn't exactly love visitors, and I'm sure he'll just be oh so thrilled to find us on his doorstep-"

"There is more than just one entrance into the Under Realm, Poseidon." She had changed into human attire while he had been distracted by the elegance of her room. She was now dressed in simple jeans and a blue blouse which matched her eyes. Over that, a worn leather jacket covered her arms, and when Poseidon looked close enough he saw simple but elegant details put into the jacket, like the celestrial bronze owl heads used for buttons. He also noticed that her usual long chocolate brown curls had been twisted into a long braid that snaked over her shoulder and down to her waist.

"Wow, well, let's hope that will suffice as a disguise." Poseidon spoke before he could stop himself, inducing an eyebrow raise from Athena.

"Excuse me?" She asked, not exactly using that deadly tone she usually used with the sea god, but asking the question with more curiosity than anything.

Poseidon shrugged lightly and turned away, moving back toward the opening that would lead him to the exit. "It's just that you still look like a goddess to me." He cleared his throat softly as he paused at the doorway to her room, looking back over his shoulder and speaking once more, cutting off whatever she was about to say. "I'll meet you at the entrance of Olympus. I have some things to grab as well." Then he was gone, but the scent of fresh salt water from the sea remained.

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_Hello there my readers this is just a short little chapter, but please bear with me as I continue to post chapters as I hope you continue to read them. Please comment and let me know what you think of the story so far ;)_


	4. Chapter 3

Annabeth didn't know how long she had lied there, clutching Percy's cold lifeless body. She had lost all track of time in her despair over losing Percy, and furthermore she had also lost any sort of fire that had been within her. She had given up, accepting that she had lost the fight and that she was more than likely doomed to remain in this darkness forever, or rather until that creature came back to finish her off. At this point, Annabeth figured it would be a mercy. She was helpless and that was the worst feeling to have sitting in your gut. Percy was gone, and she felt that when he died, so did everything else inside of her. Without him… she didn't want to live without him. They were going to be happy, Percy promised! He said he wouldn't ever leave her again…

"This is your deepest darkest nightmare, is it not, Annabeth Chase?"

Annabeth jumped up and opened her eyes, blinking and looking down, still half sitting in a puddle of blood, but Percy had disappeared. "I… what have you done with him?!" She demanded, her eyes feeling sore and puffy from the salt of her tears.

"None of your concern, but have no fear, you shall see him plenty. Alive, maybe not, but you will see him nonetheless-"

"What are you talking about… just… just give him back to me!" She screamed, covered with sticky warm blood that she knew was Percy's.

Annabeth could hear the voice, the voice that had come from the creature before, but she did not see him as she was enveloped in darkness. After a moment of silence, the voice spoke unexpected words to her, "But of course, Miss Chase."

Annabeth gasped and flung her hands up to shield her eyes as a blinding light was cast down upon her, like a giant searchlight. She peeked through her fingers and nearly jumped out of her skin as she saw a silhouette to her right, a familiar figure in fact. "Percy?" She questioned, blinking. Rising slowly, she went to the standing figure, reaching out with her long delicate fingers, but before she could touch him, he turned and she screamed and shrunk back in horror, falling to the cavern floor and scrambling back. It looked like Percy, but it wasn't. His skin was ghostly pale and his eyes sunken with purple bruises beneath; his clothes were the same as she remembered, but there was a hole in his shirt, right in the middle, and through that she could see pink scar tissue, fresh, as if it had just happened and he had gotten a quick fix. But there was no way… he had been dead… she didn't understand…

"Ww-what is this..?" She gasped, staring at him wide-eyed, her body shaking with the shock of seeing Percy in this condition. "Percy, what did they do to you…?"

Then, another form appeared beside Percy, seeming to emerge from the darkness itself. It didn't have a distinct face or body figure for that matter, merely a shadow. It wrapped itself around Percy, a sharp silvery blade emerging from what was probably the shadows hand. "I don't know. What did we do to you, Percy?" The shadow mimicked, a cackle rising and filling Annabeth's ears as she witnessed the shadow press the blade against Percy's neck. Blood soon rose to the surface, oozing in a line down the white of Percy's neck. "Annabeth…!" Percy gasped and for a second Annabeth saw the Percy she remembered…her friend…her_ love_.

"Percy…" And then, he was gone as fast as he had reappeared. The shadow jerked the blade across the soft skin of his neck, opening him up, blood spurting and spotting Annabeth, a scream rising from her throat as she watched Percy fall to the cavern floor, writhing in pain on the ground until he again went still, blood oozing from the cut across his throat.

"GODS!" Annabeth screamed and cast her arms over her eyes as she bent over, dazed and nauseous from what she had just witnessed. "Please… please…!" She begged, wanting a way out, afraid to open her eyes again to what she might find waiting for her. She couldn't take this…

She heard rustling then and her stomach twisted as her mind began thinking on its own of what it could possibly be. "Please…" She whispered again beneath her breath as she started to peek through her arms. "…give me strength." She prayed silently as she parted her arms to see herself once again cast in lights, gods forbid they darkened any detail of Percy's torture from her view. What she saw in front of her was Percy once again, but this time he was sat in a chair and tied, the pain and fright looking real in his sunken eyes, and a new fresh scar apparent across his throat. "Annabeth…" He whispered. The distress sounded real, like he was truly afraid and it tugged at her heart. She couldn't watch this_. No more_.

"PLEASE!" She screamed, her hands going up to her eyes, fingers trembling out of her control, her heart skittering in her chest. "WHAT DO YOU WANT FROM ME?!"

She heard another rustle and a soft breeze ran over her giving her goose bumps, the hair on the back of her neck rising as she felt what she thought was warm breath against her ear. "I want you to scream…" She jumped and involuntarily looked up from the shelter of her arms long enough to watch as Percy burst into flames, to watch him struggle and wither slowly as the flames ate him alive, his screams constant, drilling into her eardrums along with her own.

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_Hello there I hope you guys are enjoying the story. Tis getting a little more interesting I think and any questions you have will be answered in chapters to come :3_


	5. Chapter 4

It was a cool night and Athena was glad that she had brought a coat to wear over her arms. She never really got the hang of life down here on Earth. Everything was so spontaneous, more in some places than others. She admired most of the little humans that tried to make a life down here, observing them day in and day out as they became more advanced. It was slow work though. She watched them as they probably would watch ants build an anthill. They were slow moving, but worked hard even with the thought in the back of their minds that it could all be destroyed in an instant by their so called 'mother nature' or anything else in their world, when in truth it was other forces at work, the gods work. Oh how oblivious they were to how fragile their lives actually were…

"I thought we were meeting back up there." Poseidon appeared from the shadows, now also dressed in humanly attire, and it was then she could really see the resemblance of him and his son. He had those same untidy black locks and now, as she watched Percy growing up, she could see they had the same sort of build, tall and lean, but with taut muscles lying beneath.

"We were, but you took too long, so I came down here to observe." She reached down to lightly pat the knife she knew was hidden at her side within the depths of her jacket, making sure that was in its place.

"My apologies. You know how Zeus gets about coming down to Earth. I had to make sure I wasn't seen. Hopefully you did the same." He adjusted the dark blue sweatshirt around his shoulders, it being the same stormy grey color as his irises were tonight. "So where are we heading? You're the strategist after all."

She moved with her usual grace, starting down the streets of New York City, humans all around them oblivious to who and what they actually were. "What automatically comes to mind when you think of the Underworld? Of Hades?" She asked casually as if Poseidon had not spoken at all.

"I- What?" Not another one of Athena's riddles. "What does this have to do with anythi-?"

"I'm trying to make you think. I'm also attempting to confirm my suspicions. Just answer the question."

Poseidon still didn't see the use in any of this, but he only sighed before thinking. What did he think of when he thought of Hades…"Death. Lifelessness and Darkness. Heat-"

"Heat." Athena repeated, cutting him off in the process. "Heat. And where on earth do we find places with extreme heat?"

Poseidon was silent a moment. He didn't know a lot about things on earth outside of the oceans and seas…but wait…

"Cracks in the earth… heat beneath the surface. Volcanos?" He looked to her and from the glint in her slivery gaze he could tell he had hit the mark.

"Doesn't it feel good to use your brain, Poseidon?" She had that little taunting half smirk on her lips, the one that usually made a little flame dance in the pit of his stomach, but for some reason he could only chuckle and agree, which was a first. The god of the sea and the goddess of wisdom never agreed upon anything. They could barely even look at each other without causing a dispute, and it was more than a little odd to see them getting along for once in their immortal lives.

"Yeah, it kind of does." He slowly slid his fingers in the pockets of his sweatshirt, looking down at his shoes. "So… we head to the nearest volcano?"

Athena gave the softest laugh and shook her head. "Give that brain a rest, I'll take it from here. Not to the nearest, but one of the largest. If every volcano was a portal to the underworld, Hades would be overwhelmed with the humans that would pop up in his realm."

"So where are we heading?" Poseidon asked, wanting to get to the point.

"Well… I think Pompeii." She looked a little unsure which made Poseidon a little more than nervous. "The only problem is that… well…"

"It's in Roman territory." Ever since Percy had gotten himself into trouble with the Roman's he'd been trying to keep an eye on the area, and to warn his son of anything he may need to know. Roman's were hostile towards Greeks in the first place, but now that they thought Percy and his group had attacked their demigod city… "Which means it'll be dangerous for us."

"But only if they catch us. They won't be able to hurt us, but it would make things worse for our children. So we'll have to be careful. Cautious, but quick. We've wasted enough time already. I figured you would be able to get us across the ocean, and by then it shouldn't be long to the ancient city."

"Sounds like we have a plan, then."

"A plan, maybe not a solid one, but a plan at least."

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_New chapters coming soon :) Please stand by, but feel free to comment and tell me what you think, I'd love to hear from you c:_


	6. Chapter 5

_"I won't let you go, Annabeth. Whatever happens we'll be together…together…together…" _

Percy gasped as his eyes snapped open, only to be greeted with more darkness. A low groan left his lips as he attempted to sit up, but it knocked the breath from him as an intense pain flooded through his torso. His heart was skittering in his chest and his breath came unevenly as he tried to make out any shapes out of the darkness.

"Calm, Percy. You must stay calm. You must stay _strong_." His father's words of wisdom ran through his mind. At this point, he never really knew if it was truly his father talking to him, but rather his conscience that had just adopted the tone of his father; either way it was comforting and soon Percy's breathing was slowing, his mind focusing enough to get his bearings. He took one last deep breath, pushing through his aches and rising to his feet, his hands on his knees to brace himself. He had to take a moment to remember… _the fall._

"Annabeth?" He called as loudly as he dared. He hadn't forgotten where they had fallen _to_. "Annabeth… where are you?" The panic slowly started to rise within him once more. She had to be around here somewhere…

"_Annabeth_…" He reached out to try and find something, anything; there had to be a way out somewhere…

Then, as if out of nowhere, there was a light. It was distant, but it was there and that was enough to rise Percy's spirits. It was like the light at the end of the tunnel. So, he started to run. He wasn't making any progress back in that dark damp cavern, so he might as well move on and maybe he'd run into Annabeth along the way.

Distracted in his thoughts, Percy hadn't realized how fast he had been approaching the circle of light as it was now looming in front of him. However, that only pushed him faster, moving his legs like he'd never before. He could almost reach it…then _BAM_. It was gone. He stumbled and smacked right into a wall of rock, not realizing how close he had come to being crushed. He tripped over his feet and landed on his back, dazed, and therefore he wasn't sure if the deep laugh that had resonated was real or not.

"Percy Jackson. Nothing but a _failure_. Always the disappointment."

Percy's ears tingled as they heard this deep voice from the darkness, this _familiar_ voice. It made the hair on the back of his neck rise and soon the panic was creeping back into his chest. "Kronos… it can't be…"

"Or it can. You and I have unfinished business, demigod." The laughter was as real as could be, it seeming to shake the caverns; or perhaps it was something else… Percy heard the groaning of rocks, the rumble of something deep within these walls. Something wasn't right.

Then a wall crashed in to his right and Percy narrowly missed being smashed once again as rock tumbled down, but not only that; water rushed into the cavern, sweeping Percy off his feet and smacking him against anything that was in reach. Percy would have laughed if the air hadn't been smacked out of his lungs. Water. What was Kronos thinking? This was his territory, not the titan's. He crashed against a jumble of large boulders across the room, landing in a pool of water, dazed for only a moment before he coughed and shook his head in an attempt to clear the fog. "I'm… the fool?" He coughed up more water before chuckling hoarsely, rising to his feet. "I'm the son of a sea god. Or have you forgotten? The water will only help me-"

"Not here." By the tone of Kronos' voice, Percy could almost envision the smirk that played on his lips. He knew something Percy didn't and that certainly didn't put Percy at any ease. He slowly shrunk back, glancing down to the water that now looked more menacing than he had realized it to be: Black, dirty liquid that had oozed from somewhere down in these depths. _Evil_.

"W-what do you mean?" Percy stumbled over his words as he took a couple steps back, eyeing the water as it seemed to slowly creep upward. The cavern was flooding.

Percy shivered at the booming laughter that bounced off the cavern walls. "I mean that you'll find no help in these waters. Here you are _powerless_."

The water lapped up at the pile of rock Percy stood upon and he was frozen with fear, unable to move, only staring as the black liquid reached his sneakers…

Then, he heard a different voice from the darkness.

"Percy?"

His heart dropped to his gut as he heard her voice, Annabeth's voice. It was near, but she sounded frightened and it filled him to the brim with rage to even think about what Kronos could have possibly done to her.

"Annabeth… it's gonna be okay Annabeth…" His eyes scoped the darkness and soon enough he found a form against the opposite wall of the cavern. Slowly, details came into view. She was chained against the boulders across the cavern, unable to move, so as the water crept up the wall and swallowed up her ankles, there was nothing she could do but scream and the water was only continuing to rise. If he didn't do something quick… she was going to drown.

"I'm coming, Annabeth!" Without a second thought he jumped into the murky depths, disappearing beneath surface and instantly he knew that this wasn't normal water. It seemed to close in on him, soaking into his clothes and hair, feeling the weight of it dragging him down. His movements slowed and he swore instead of making headway he was getting pulled deeper and deeper beneath the surface. In normal circumstances he could hold his breath for a long time, but in this panic the burn in his lungs seemed to appear faster than ever before. He struggled, pulling himself through the thick liquid in what he thought was the right direction.

Then, he broke the surface. He gasped and kicked hard to keep himself above the water, and with one glance toward Annabeth, he saw he didn't have much time. The water was already up to her waist and she looked even more frightened than before. "Annabeth… it's.. gonna be okay." He whispered through his heavy breathing. "I.. promise." His heart dropped a little bit though when he realized he wasn't even halfway across the room. He took a deep breath before starting the struggle once more, working his way through the water towards Annabeth, but it seemed to be solidifying faster and faster beneath his fingertips.

"Well, this is just a little too easy, don't you think?" Kronos laughed lowly before his voice faded to be replaced by yet another.

"Percy… sweetie.."

Percy didn't know if he just had water in his ears or if the voice was real, but the mere thought of it actually here in this hell where he and Annabeth were at brought stinging tears to the back of his eyes. "Mom..?"

"Oh Percy…" He found his mother against another wall of the cavern, chained up like Annabeth was, the water gathering around her shoulders, and she was about the same distance as Annabeth was from him at the moment.

"Oh gods… mom…" His heart squeezed in his chest as he looked from his mother to Annabeth and back again. How could he possibly save the both of them…?

"Kronos stop this! Please!" Percy was at the point of begging, putting himself at the mercy of this titan. He couldn't let this happen, but he was powerless just as Kronos had said.

"I don't think I will demigod. This is in your useless hands and their deaths will be on your head."

Percy could hardly breath, feeling as if he were miles and miles beneath the surface and the pressure of the water were crushing his entire being. "No… NO! PLEASE! HELP THEM! Help them…" He felt the hot tears of defeat slowly trickle down his cheeks, looking up to see Annabeth and his mother watching him. "I'm so sorry…" He gasped, trying to kick through the gooey liquid to get closer to them, but he felt as if he were stuck in the same place.

"You've failed us Percy." Annabeth suddenly said, her features going stony and looking almost angry.

"You've always been a disappointment Percy." His mother chipped in, taking on the same glare in her eyes.

"No, no I… No please I never wanted this…"

"You promised you'd save us Percy."

"This is all your fault Percy."

Percy's ears rang with all the accusations, hurting him as if they were physical blows, closing his eyes tight and shaking his head. "No.. please!" His breathing came faster but he didn't seem to be getting enough air, his lungs feeling as if they were being crushed. He watched helplessly as the water wandered farther and farther over them until it came to their chin.

"…disappointed…"

"…failure…"

Their hurtful words smacked him continuously until they couldn't anymore. The water rose swiftly and covered them, silencing them, bubbles rising to the surface, but soon enough, even that had ceased.

"NO!" Percy yelled, his pained voice echoing off the remaining walls of the cavern, his hands clawing at the water, but still he was unable to go nowhere, only using up his strength. "NO….no….no… I'm so sorry… please… I'm so… so sorry…." Without them, he didn't understand what the use of the struggle was for. More against his will than anything, he slowly slipped beneath the black surface, feebly kicking to stay at the surface, but at the moment he just didn't care.

"_You're no hero demigod. You've failed which makes you a failure. And that's just what you'll always be." _

Kronos' laughter drummed into Percy's skull as he slowly drifted beneath the surface, his lungs burning for the air he figured he'd never intake again. His head became clouded as the lack of oxygen slowly made him drift unconscious.

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_Another chapter down and quite a few to go I think anyway haha please keep reading and comment and I'll update as soon as I can :)_


	7. Chapter 6

Athena had never realized how beautiful the ocean really was. Of course she'd always seen everything above the surface, but beneath it was a whole other world. When Poseidon and she had reached the ocean shore, she figured it would have been more of a challenge to find a way across the ocean's waters, but Poseidon had taken care of it almost too easily. He simply stepped into the water, closed his eyes and murmured words unknown to her beneath his breath; before she knew it, life rippled beneath the surface and appeared, taking her breath away. She had seen many mystical things in her immortal life, but this was a surprise. A creature slowly bobbed to the surface, it's neck stretching high above them, teeth glinting out of its large snout and green eyes glowing as they found the sea god below.

"Oh my…" She had been struck speechless.

"Come, she'll be good." He then proceeded to wade into the waters until he was next to the sea monster, climbing easily upon its serpent like back and extending his hand out to her. After she hesitated he sighed softly, looking like he was trying to hold back laughter. "We were on a time limit?"

After eyeing the monster for another moment or so, she very cautiously approached, took Poseidon's hand and mounted the serpent. "I don't think-"

"Just hold on." Poseidon patted the creature's slick scaly neck and it's like it knew automatically what the sea god wanted. It turned and dove beneath the surface, jerking Athena back; but before she could slip off and get left behind she wrapped her arms tight around Poseidon's middle, keeping herself braced steady against him.

"This is insane…" She whispered and Poseidon once again had to hold back his laughter. She just looked so unnatural beneath the water, so _scared_; he'd never seen the wisdom goddess like this before.

"Just sit back and enjoy the ride. Should be nothing but smooth swimming." He gently patted the creature's neck once more before relaxing, but Athena wouldn't ease her grip even a little bit from around him. She of course noticed how dry they were and how she could take deep easy breaths even though they were beneath the surface. No doubt it was part of Poseidon's sea god powers and whatnot, but it was difficult to get her mind around.

"Frankly I think this is a little unfair." Athena finally said after hours of silence of riding beneath the water. Poseidon glanced back at her and raised a brow, but an amused smile came to his lips.

"Want to elaborate a little bit so I can defend myself?"

Athena couldn't help but return his smile, shaking her head a bit as she looked around to see schools of fish swimming by them, literally just an arm's width away. "You get the waters and the skies, that's all. Most of us only get the skies, but you're fortunate enough to have both: the Pegasus and then all these beautiful creatures below to take you wherever you please. Unfair."

Poseidon laughed softly beneath his breath; his eyes stayed forward as he spoke. "Well, I'm just fortunate I guess, but if it's more of the ocean you wish to see, all you have to do is stay on my good side and I'll take you wherever you wish to go." He spoke simply and shrugged like it wasn't a big deal.

Now it was Athena's turn to be surprised. "Okay now you're just being cruel, sea god. We both know once we find our children that this short-term truce is over…"

"It doesn't have to be that way… I mean… would it be so horrible to simply stay civil? It's just, well, I'm sick of this feud. It's nonsense."

"You really think we'll be able to tolerate each other? That we won't find something else to argue about? I don't want to return to the way we were either, but to me it sounds inevitable."

Poseidon sighed then, looking tired once more as he used to whenever he started an argument with Athena. "If it does turn out that way it will have been our own doing." Then, they reverted back into silence.

* * *

Athena didn't know how much time had passed before the serpent started to change course towards the surface, allowing her attention to sharpen once more. "Are we there already?"

"We've been riding for hours, but yes we're there."

The serpent slid its way through the water and parted the surface, staying low as not to attract attention. The mist would surely disguise their arrival, but who knows what the human's would see. Better just to keep a low profile all together.

They glided their way along, parting the waters until they came to the shore where Poseidon dismounted the beast and helped Athena down into the water as well. The creature then slowly brought its snout in front of Poseidon and Athena swore she could see affection in the serpent's eyes. She observed as Poseidon reached up with one of his big hands and touched the front of the snout, giving it a soft pat afterward before starting to talk in a strange language that even she couldn't understand.

After a moment, Poseidon stepped back and watched as the creature sunk back beneath the surface, disappearing from view almost as if it had never been there.

"What did you say to it?" Athena asked, curiosity getting the best of her. She was the goddess of wisdom. There wasn't a lot that she didn't know and frankly she was a little agitated that the sea god knew something she didn't.

Poseidon made his way through the water, glancing back at her with an amused glimmer in his eyes. "I just gave her my thanks. I heard that's usually the norm after riding on something's back." He laughed softly beneath his breath as he moved onto the shore and through the sand, hearing Athena's footsteps signaling she was following behind him.

"Oh my… this is beautiful." Athena's eyes took in everything at once as they made their way off the shore and up onto a cobblestone street where the brick structures stretched on as far as the eye could see; and although many were damaged and literally crumbling beneath her fingertips, she could tell that this was once a magnificent city. The Roman's that built this place really knew what they were doing. "My little Annabeth would love this place…"

Poseidon lightly shook his head as he started to walk through the streets. They could look at the sights as they went, but they had to keep moving. He could see the silhouette of what had to be the volcano in the distance, and from what he could tell they had a long ways to go. "You'll bring her here someday. After we get them back. Then she can see it for herself."

Athena nodded quickly in agreement, desperate to convince herself that they would indeed get her daughter back.

* * *

They moved through the ruins of the city faster than Athena figured they would, covering about half the city before she noticed the sun hovering low in the sky. "It'll be getting dark soon." She stopped in her footsteps and turned in a circle, getting her bearings. "I don't think we should continue on after the sun sets…"

Poseidon stopped her there with a burst of laughter, stopping and turning back toward her. "I never thought an immortal goddess would be afraid of the dark."

Athena gave him a pointed glare and placed her hands on her hips. "Watch your mouth seaweed brain. Have you forgotten that we're in Roman territory? I don't feel like getting stalked in the night-"

"Oh, loosen up. This place is abandoned, therefore, there's nothing to stalk us. Besides, we're immortal gods. What could anything possibly do to us?"

Athena was about ready to slap the ignorant sea god, but before she could the hair at the back of her neck prickled with a sense that they were being watched. "Shh!" She hissed and looked around, her eyes sharp as she tried to find any sort of clue to why she was feeling so uncomfortable. "Something's not right…"

"Gods, you're so paranoid-"

"Would you please-?!"

But she didn't get to finish as she was rushed by someone with a spear. She reacted on instinct and swiftly grabbed her dagger from beneath her jacket, dodged the spear and used the person's momentum against them, shoving them into the nearest wall, their body smacking into it full force, knocking them out. Athena was now in full war mode, a fire in her eyes that made even Poseidon not want to mess with her. "Abandoned huh?" She snapped.

Poseidon only stared for a moment before reaching for his own weapon. "Sorry," he said simply before swiftly turning, his sword coming out with a _shing_ and he dodged the next warrior that came at him, running at the next one whose helmet made contact with the butt of his sword hard enough to bring the warrior to the ground. "Let's go!" he started moving down the street, knowing that staying in this one spot wasn't going to do them a bit of good. They were just going to keep coming.

Athena quickly followed after, her dagger held comfortably in her fingers as they ran. "What exactly is your plan?" She called after him, glancing over her shoulder to find the street empty, but no doubt more of them were lurking in the shadows, following them.

"Anywhere but here?" He asked it like a question, assuming he kind of needed her approval after he had been wrong.

"Good enough." They turned off the main street and into a sort of tunnel, their breathing echoing softly off the stone walls. They made a couple of twists and turns before emerging onto a large open area that, with a quick glance, reminded Athena of a sort of coliseum. "You expect us to lose them in here?"

"It's not like I really know where I'm goin-" He gasped as the ground dropped out beneath them, everything happening so fast. They dropped into a sort of pit, Poseidon first and Athena right after, a strangled cry erupting from Poseidon as Athena dropped down on top of him. She gasped and coughed as she sensed a sort of gas that she was instantly inhaling upon falling down in the depths of this pit.

"Poseidon…" She gasped and coughed, her mind going a bit fuzzy as well as her vision, but she was alert enough to feel a sort of warm slick liquid against her fingertips as she tried to raise herself off of the sea god. "What…what is this..?" Her eyes began to water from the present gas, but in that moment, she was more concerned about the liquid trickling down her fingertips. _Ichor._

"Poseidon-!" She gasped, looking down, her eyes trying to focus, finding her magical dagger embedded up to the hilt into Poseidon's abdomen. "Oh..oh no… " Her shaking fingers lightly brushed the cold hilt of the dagger, taking a grip, but she wouldn't be able to pull it out as she didn't have the strength. She coughed and slowly laid her head back down on his chest, listening to his strong heart beat in his chest as her eyes started to close against their will. "It's going… to be… okay…" Her mind slowly began to go under, thinking she heard the soft click of footsteps before she completely gave in to the darkness closing in around her.

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_Hello my readers :) thank you for continuing to follow this story with me and I hope you're enjoying it. Please leave me comments and I shall update soon :3_


	8. Chapter 7

_It was a beautiful, sunny day outside, the typical weather one would experience at camp half blood, and Percy and Annabeth were on their usual morning walk to the lake. It was the best time because they basically had the crystal clear waters all to themselves. Percy's arm slid lazily around Annabeth's shoulders as he guided her along the dirt path, a smile on his face and a song in his heart. They walked in silence, which was a weird thing that Percy had gotten used to, but he had learned from Annabeth how intimate silence could be. Words didn't always have to be said. _

_ They soon emerged through the tall grass and onto the sandy shore of the lake, which was once again desolate. Percy gently took Annabeth's hand and led her towards the water, dropping their towels on some rocks in the sand before bringing her to the edge of the water, turning to face her and taking her other hand in his own, walking in backwards while keeping his eyes on her. "It's going to be a good day," he said as the water lapped at their ankles almost playfully. _

_ Annabeth giggled softly under her breath as she was pulled farther into the water with Percy, her eyes sparkling in the bright morning sunlight. "You say that every day." _

_ "And every day so far has been good, hasn't it?" Percy smiled that crooked half grin, the one that made the butterflies in Annabeth's stomach go crazy. _

_ "I suppose so…" She laughed and playfully slapped at Percy's arms as they pulled her close to his torso, his head coming down to nuzzle hers affectionately. _

_ "Oh, come now, you know it's true." He wrapped his arms snuggly around her middle, holding her captive, pressing a loving kiss to her temple, which awarded him with another sweet giggle from her lips. _

_ "Okay, okay, I'll give you the benefit of the doubt just this once, seaweed brain." She smiled brightly, a glint of mischief in her silvery irises, but Percy caught it just a little too late. She twisted easily out of his arms, delivering a swift kick to his ankles, bringing them out from beneath him, knocking him flat onto his back into the water with a splash. _

_ Percy spluttered, but started laughing soon afterward, raising himself up slightly just onto his elbows, shaking the water out of his dark locks. "Come on, Annabeth, what did I do now-?" But before he could drag himself up completely out of the water, she had lowered herself over him, her legs on either side of his waist, her fingers reaching to slick back his hair from his eyes. _

_ "Nothing. Absolutely nothing." She smiled softly before placing her fingers lightly against his cheeks and guiding his lips to hers. _

_ They were just as soft and sweet as they always were, and even though Percy always anticipated her sweet kisses, he would never be used to them. They would always bring those same butterflies in his gut, making them flutter chaotically; his heart would start to race and his fingers would begin to tremble and there would be no way to stop it. _

_ Their kisses would always start out soft, sweet, innocent, but as the minutes went by, they would begin to become something more: fevered, intimate, desperate and everything in between. Percy's fingers would tangle in Annabeth's hair, keeping her lips within range and as soon as he was confident they would stay put, his fingers would wander elsewhere. _

_ "Mm… Percy…." Her soft words against his lips would often send shivers down his spine and leave his heart quaking in his chest; her words gave him confidence that he was doing something right. He smiled against her lips, his lashes lightly tickling her skin as he pulled her closer, envisioning her beauty beyond the closed lids of his eyes. _

_ "I love you, Annabeth…" These words were always sincere, and it always pleasantly squeezed his heart to receive these words in return. Her lips nipped at his sweetly at his words, feeling her smile against his skin, enjoying the silence for a short moment before hearing those words he enjoyed so much. _

_ "And I love you… Percy Jackson…" _

_ Except it was not Annabeth's voice that reached his ears. Percy gasped and his eyes snapped open to find not Annabeth's face hovering over his, but a monster's; its glowing eyes boring into him and its wide wicked smile showing off its full set of sharp little fangs. _

_Percy's natural instinct was to extend his arms, trying to shove whatever this was up and off of him, but the creature had the advantage, its legs tightening around him and her surprisingly strong scrawny arms fighting back, pinning his hands above his head. "What's the matter, demigod? Demon got your tongue?" She hissed and let off a high pitched cackle, her mouth parting wide, her needle sharp teeth glinting in the sunlight as she swiftly bent down, going for his throat…_

Percy's eyes snapped open, his heart pounding frantically in his chest as he slowly acquired his bearings. A dream… only a dream, or perhaps it was better classified as a nightmare. He squeezed his eyes shut for a moment before opening them once more, trying to adjust his eyes to the darkness. "Annabeth…" he whispered softly in despair, as among the aches and pains in his body, his heart was what pained him the most.

He slowly started to push himself up from the stone floor as he pushed back the pain erupting within his head as well, rising to his feet. Dazed, he ran his fingers through his hair, not exactly the steadiest on his feet. His mind kept flashing back to the last time he had been conscious, watching as his mother and Annabeth drowned before his very eyes and he was powerless to do anything about it. The mere thought of it made him weak in the knees and almost sent him to the floor once more, but he powered through, trying to stay sane. Something wasn't right here…

Unfortunately, he didn't get a lot of time to think. The sudden movement of the earth below him was enough to send him to his knees, bracing himself against the rough stone floor with his hands splayed out in front of him. "Nothing to fear… nothing to fear, Percy, this is all a trick," he whispered beneath his breath, shutting his eyes tightly. Sometimes it was easier to cope with things when you didn't have to look at them…

The ground shook mercilessly and Percy's ears picked up infinite sounds around him: cracking of who knows what, a sort of bubbling, and crashing of all sorts. It sounded like the cavern was going to collapse on top of him or something…

Then, the voice was back. "Demigod, you've finally awakened. I feared I had been a little too hard on you for your first round of torture. There's no need to wear you down so much so soon."

Percy gritted his teeth and kept his eyes closed as he had no wish to see the titan he knew was in front of him. "Kronos… you will pay for what you've done..." Percy's voice was definitely not as convincing as he wished it would have been and therefore he wasn't surprised when the titan let off a booming laugh.

"Oh Percy… when are you going to learn that you cannot hurt me? Let alone defeat me. Someone always has to come around and do it for you, but as you can see, no one is here to help you now." Kronos' fist came down and hit the stone floor of the cavern with a savage punch, cracking the stone into a spider web pattern, and at the sonic crash that reached Percy's ears in the aftermath, his eyes snapped open fast enough to see blazing liquid seep up from the cracks in the floor, lighting up the face of Kronos above him.

"Oh gods…!" Percy swore and scrambled back before the molten rock could make any sort of contact with him, his eyes looking wild and frantic, lost and confused. How was any of this even possible? "Kronos you're mad! Stop this!"

A crazed cackle split the air, just like the one in his dream, sending ripples down his spine. "What's the matter Percy? Too weak to do this on your own?"

Percy's eyes tore from the lava flowing in front of him, turning swiftly to find Annabeth before him, a dagger spinning in her petite fingers as her eyes stayed on him, similarly to a hungry owl hunting a mouse. "You're… you're not Annabeth…" Percy stammered, stumbling back a couple steps as the doppelganger moved toward him, looking fierce, but her appearance of Annabeth kept throwing Percy off. He just so desperately wished to see a friendly face that he wanted to settle for this, even though he fully well knew this wasn't the real Annabeth.

The doppelganger showed him large innocent silvery eyes, its dagger held loosely in its fingertips. "What do you mean seaweed brain? Of course it's me… I thought I had lost you… but then I heard your voice in the darkness and I… I just followed it right to you."

For those split couple of seconds, her voice sounded sincere and Percy could pretend that Annabeth was here with him, ready to fight at his side like she said she'd always be. "Annabeth…" He walked toward her, his arms extended, and then she was in his arms. He pressed her tightly to his chest as tears stung the back of his eyes. He had been so afraid… afraid he'd never see her ever again. "Gods… Annabeth I thought I'd lost you…"

She fit perfectly in his arms, just like she always had, but still… something wasn't right. The hairs started to prickle at the base of his neck and his eyes slowly opened as she felt her press a sweet kiss to his cheek. "You have."

It all happened so fast. Percy was more than a little thrown off by her words and his brows furrowed in his confusion as he started to pull back from her, but before he fully could, a flash of hot pain streaked through his entire body starting at the center of his back. A scream of intense pain left his lips, the strength instantly being swiped from his legs, sending him to his knees. "A-Annabeth…" he gasped, his breathing coming hard as he felt hot liquid trickling down his back.

That cackle ripped through his eardrums again, making Percy shiver as Annabeth slowly moved onto her knees beside him, taking his face in her fingers and making him look at her. "You trust the wrong people, Percy. In fact, you can't trust anyone. They'll just end up stabbing you in the back." Her high pitched laugh slammed into him once more as she shoved him back onto the stone ground before rising to her feet, slowly cleaning off his blood from her dagger on the front of her pants.

Percy gritted his teeth, his face pressed against the cold ground, trying to wake himself up as he suddenly felt very drowsy, his vision swimming. "No…"

The doppelganger twisted sharply, looking at him with her silvery eyes, the glow of the lava around them lighting her up, making her look how she truly was, demonic. "Pardon?" She giggled and rested her hands against her hips, watching him.

"You're wrong." Percy spoke again, his face scrunched up in pain, but no matter how hard it was, he pushed it to the back of his mind and started to rise to his knees, intense anger in his eyes. "I put my trust in many people, the right people. The only mistake I made with trust was to trust you."

If Percy wasn't seeing things, he thought he saw a little surprise in the eyes of this monster, but as quick as it was there it was gone, replaced with a smirk as she started to saunter back to him with dagger in hand. "Maybe I didn't shove this thing deep enough inside of you to teach you the lesson I wanted to."

It was Percy's turn to laugh, although it was a little pitiful. He coughed and shook his head, slowly starting to rise to his feet, his hands slowly clenching into fists. "I'm not afraid of you." He took his own step toward the doppelganger, fierce determination in his eyes. "In fact, I'm not in the mood for this right now, and if you knew what was good for you, you would leave."

Once again, the doppelganger looked a little uncertain and more than a little bewildered. That demigod should not be on his feet after a wound like the one she had given him. "What could you…possibly do to me?" It laughed, but nowhere near as confidently as before. It was shaken and an amused smirk graced Percy's lips because of it.

"I'd be obliged to show you." Anger made his veins ripple from beneath his skin, his eyes seeming to glow green as the seas. He clenched his fists tightly, looked to the lava to his right and sent a silent prayer to his father. "I've never done this before dad. You're going to have to help me with this one…" He slowly raised his fists and to his surprise, the lava obeyed, moving in sync with his hands, but there was a considerable difference that he felt between controlling plain water and this lava. Water is cool and collected, soothing and healing, but this lava was spirited and full of energy, wild and dangerous… which is maybe just what he needed in this moment.

His eyes turned to the doppelganger once more whom seemed to pale as she watched the lava move towards her, her eyes wide as if she couldn't believe what she was seeing. "You wouldn't hurt me… I'm… I'm your sweet Annabeth, you love me you wouldn't hurt me!" She screeched as the lava slowly surrounded her, cutting off any sort of escape.

"No. You're not my Annabeth." He gritted his teeth, closing his eyes tight in concentration as he made a swift movement with his hand, the lava obeying and crashing over the doppelganger, her screams piercing Percy's ears, making his gut twist uneasily. He swallowed hard as his fists loosened and hung at his sides, his form looking a little sunken as the adrenaline started to leave him. "I'm done playing these stupid games. I'm finding Annabeth and we're getting out of here," he spoke beneath his heavy breath, but he barely even took a step before he crumpled, falling to the stone floor as he had no more strength left. His eyes drifted closed, his limbs feeling like jelly and his back flaring with pain, but even as he was slipping away from this world once more, his mind still fought over what had to be fake and what was reality.

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_Yet another chapter down yay :) comment and tell me what you think I love hearing from you guys and another chapter will be coming soon. _


	9. Chapter 8

Athena's eyes slowly opened to a small room lit by candlelight, her head throbbing like nothing else. "Gods…" She muttered, her vision swirling before her as she attempted to raise her head. "Ow…" She laid her head back down and squeezed her eyes shut, reaching with a hand in an attempt rub her aching temple when she noticed the weight pulling against her wrists. Her brows furrowed in confusion as she opened her eyes to see the newly decorative chains that wound around her wrists and connected to the wall beside her. "What the..?"

Then the door swung open, her eyes moving sluggishly from the chains to the two people that entered the room. "She's awake." They were masked with helms, so Athena couldn't make out any features of any sort to give away their identities. "But she still looks pretty out of it." The voice was female, but that's all she could get out of it.

"Let's bring her to Cassian, then, while she won't give us any trouble." That was that other voice. It was deeper, more gruff, so it was probably a male. They came toward her, one reaching down to unlock the cuffs around her wrists before they each took one of her arms and hauled her to her feet, carrying her from the room.

Upon leaving the dim dank room, intense light invaded her sight, nearly permanently blinding her. She gasped and groaned softly, squeezing her eyes shut, but the light seemed forever imprinted on her retinas. In spite of her obvious discomfort, the warriors dragging her gave no sign of caring. They only continued on down the street until they came to a massive white brick building that loomed above them almost majestically and Athena, even in her state, couldn't help but admire the beauty.

She was dragged up the rough stone steps and through the large opening where a door probably used to be, but now only seemed to be collapsing in on itself. At this point she couldn't help but wonder why people would hide out here in the condition it was in… but then she saw it. It was all an illusion. The crumbling walls soon turned into its former beauty of painter murals and polished stone. Columns ran alongside the walls which drew her attention to a ceiling that almost took her breath away. It was domed with angelic paintings decorating the inside, looking brand new with marble statuettes decorating the rim. Amazing… this place was disguised by the mist to look like ruins, just like camp half-blood was made to look like a strawberry field. She soon began to wonder just how many of these buildings were actually ruins-

"Cassian." The male soldier spoke, hefting Athena up the grand marble stairs to where two people sat, a male and a female, looking none too old, but mature in the least and they didn't look particularly happy to see her. "She had begun to stir, and we figured you'd want to speak with her immediately, while she doesn't pose a threat." They released her then, but her legs still felt like jelly and therefore gave no support, making her collapse to the ground where she was helpless to defend herself if need be.

The boy named Cassian slowly rose from his seat, dressed in bronze armor that shimmered like gold and his curly dark locks falling into his crystal blue eyes. His angelic features were a little hard to read, but a flutter in his jaw told her that he was curious, but also afraid for reasons she did not know.

He stood before her then, looking down at her, and it was then she realized just how young he was; he was probably no older than Percy. "You were trespassing. State your business here. And speak your words carefully. One slip up and it may mean your life."

Athena, of course, knew that was impossible, but that wasn't her concern here. They were wasting time that they couldn't afford to lose. "I… my friend… my friend and I we're only tourists. We meant no harm we just… got a little lost from our group and-"

She was cut off by his bitter laughter. His eyes seemed to harden a little more as he moved down onto one knee beside her, no humor in his features. "It will do you no good to lie to me."

"But I'm not lying-"

His fingers snatched up her coat then, bringing her close to his face. "I'm insulted that you take me for a fool. You can't be tourists because you're not even human." He shoved her back onto the ground and rose once again, towering over her. "Your _friend_ was injured when we found him." His fingers went to his waist where a leather pouch hung. He dug his fingers in and pulled out a vial, a vial filled with a golden liquid. "This is what came from his wounds… now, correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't believe humans bleed ichor."

Athena's heart dropped in her chest and it was suddenly hard for her to breath. "Please. We never meant any harm. We're just trying to get to the mountains-"

Cassian chuckled softly beneath his breath as he replaced the vial into the pouch, crossing his arms and looking down to her. "You're not going anywhere. Not until you start giving me answers. What are you? What is your purpose here?"

"I can't-"

"You will or so help me -!"

Athena was sick of being treated in such a manner that she lost it. Her eyes started to glow and her voice became something more, something almost monstrous. "What could you possibly do to an immortal goddess, demigod?" Her skin seemed to glow and her strength began to return, enabling her to rise onto her feet. "Maybe it is you who should choose their words carefully."

Athena could have laughed as she witnessed their expressions change into bewilderment. Cassian stumbled back along with his warriors, but he was idiotic enough to draw his sword. His eyes were wide with disbelief, but he stood his ground, which was something that was admirable. "Goddess… I don't know what you seek, but I will defend my people, no matter what the cost. I'm no coward."

Athena sighed softly and shook her head, her anger slowly started to subside as well as the glowing. When the silver in her eyes was visible again, she looked into his eyes and as sincerely as possible she spoke, "I am not here to hurt you or your people. All I want is the injured one that you spoke of and we want passage to the volcano."

"But I… may I ask why?"

"That is none of your concern." It probably wouldn't do them any good to know there is a passage to the underworld hidden nearby. Best be left alone. "But I do promise you that it will do none of you harm. This is simply business that needs to get taken care of. Now, I would very much be pleased if you would bring out the injured one that you spoke of. I do expect that he has recovered?"

Cassian nodded as he slowly replaced his sword in its sheath. "Yes. I was with them when they tended to his wound. We cleaned it, gave him some water, and he seemed to heal right up."

Athena smiled the smallest bit and nodded. "Of course. He tends to do that." She crossed her arms slowly across her chest. "Now bring him to me, and perhaps, if you care to hear, I will inform you of our plans in the process."

_It was dark, so dark that he couldn't tell the difference between his eyes being shut and being open. He heard nothing but the labored sound of his breathing… and then… a light. At first he thought he was just seeing things, but no. This was real. The faint glow was enough for him to see he was on a ledge, and it was a long ways down. He tried to raise himself up with his arms, but as he did so, an agonizing pain flared through him, ripping a yell of pain from his lips and leaving him dizzy. Okay… best not to move either, but why was he feeling this way? He couldn't remember what happened… _

_His eyes adjusted to the glow of light, and after a few moments he could make out details below. Somehow, the floor beneath him was cracking and boiling molten rock oozed through the openings, causing the light. How strange…then his eyes picked up something else down in the darkness. There were two figures, but they couldn't possibly be people…? He focused his eyes, his brows furrowed in concentration, and then it hit him like a typhoon. How could he have mistaken those messy dark locks? Percy! And the other one had to be Annabeth… but… something wasn't right. He parted his lips to speak, but nothing would come out… what was this trickery? He watched helplessly as the figure that had to be Annabeth came to Percy and embraced him, but something glinted in her hand, poised above his son's back. No. He wanted to yell, shout, do anything to attract his boy's attention, but he was restrained by some unknown source._

_She then thrusted the blade into his back, Percy's yell of agony reaching his ears, making him go ballistic. That was his son! He had to help! But it seemed there was nothing he could do. Percy shoved Annabeth back, but Poseidon could feel the strength in his son fading. "Percy!" He yelled, but to Percy, the voice was nothing but a whisper. _

_But it seemed Percy didn't exactly need his help. In less than three seconds there was an incredible change within his son. His strength surged, and Poseidon thought he could hear his voice inside his head. "I may need your help with this one, dad." But Percy didn't realize how strong he was. The cavern lit up as the lava oozing from the crack in the earth came to life, whirling around Percy, before smacking into 'Annabeth' and setting her ablaze. My gods… how much his son has grown… and how powerful he has become. _

"_Hang on, Percy. You're strong and you can fight this. We'll be there soon…"_

Poseidon awoke groggily, his head slowly clearing of the vision like a boat slicing through fog. He groaned lowly as he realized he was moving, or rather, he was being dragged across the rough flooring. His mind gradually became more clear as well as the fury within his chest. "Unhand me you sly, sneaky, unworthy-"

A hand lightly smacked him over the head, fixing his attention. He looked up to start telling off whoever had dared to handle him in such a way, but was pleasantly surprised to see Athena standing before him. "Athe-" But she shot him a warning glare and that was enough to shut him up.

"Glad to see you're alright." Athena said, and despite her warning gaze, he could tell there was a substantial amount of relief in her eyes. After all, she was the one that stabbed him in the first place.

"I'm sure you are." He replied as he was slowly brought to his feet and steadied. He still felt weak and it was a peculiar feeling as it was one he didn't experience often. However, he had to quickly cast it aside as they had indeed wasted too much time. "But as it turns out I'm fine, we should continue on quickly." He then turned to the warriors behind him, giving a little bow. "I'm grateful for your hospitality… although a little too rough I appreciate it all the same." He started to step back and Athena moved to follow, but they hardly took two steps before there were warriors blocking their way; their spears were held diagonally, making a barricade that obstructed their path.

Athena threw a glance over her shoulder, glaring at Cassian and struggling to keep in her anger. She wasn't used to mortals pushing her around, and she hadn't been taking it well and she figured she never would. "What's the meaning of this?" She hissed.

Cassian rose slowly from his chair; a look of frustration had crossed his own features. He started down the steps until he was only a few feet from them. He attempted to keep a level tone, but the dark glint in his eyes gave away the bitterness he felt inside. "You promised me information. I need to know your purpose, or I fear I cannot let you leave."

A laugh almost escaped Athena's lips. She would have liked to see the Romans try and hold them against their will and she opened her mouth to tell them so, but she wouldn't get the chance. Out of nowhere, the ground beneath them began to shake and rumble; the building creaked overhead, and for a moment, Athena was worried the structure would collapse on top of them, but as soon as it had started it faded. When the ground trembled Poseidon had stumbled and caught himself on one of the columns supporting the building's ceiling; his eyes had become wide and bewildered and he observed that everyone else seemed to be just as surprised as they were.

"What was that?" Poseidon righted himself after the movement beneath his feet stopped and he squared off to the Roman leader, expecting an answer. "Well?" He urged.

Cassian seemed to go several shades paler as he looked around: to his warriors, outside, then finally to Poseidon when he spoke. "I… I'm not quite sure but it.." He raised a hand to his forehead and wiped a trickle of sweat from his brow. His hands shook and to hide it he reached down and gripped the hilt of his sword for comfort before glancing to his right hand man. "Gather everyone. We have to leave. Immediately."

Athena definitely did not appreciate being kept in the dark and when he refused to speak she went to him; her fingers gripped the cloth of his shirt and tugged him down to be eyelevel with her. "_What is going on_?" She growled as heard the _shing_ of swords being slid from their sheaths. Poseidon's eyes darkened and he started to take a step toward them to inform them of their mistake, but Cassian made a quick gesture for them to put their weapons down.

"That won't be necessary." Cassian's eyes then returned to Athena's. "The quake… it was volcanic activity." Athena's eyes widened slightly in surprise and her grip loosened enough for him to slip out of her grip, straightening his armor. "Which means we need to get off this island. Fast."

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Hello my readers! :) Seriously, I must apologize for not updating in so long. I've been so busy and to add to that I've had a horrible case of writer's block :/ So i'm sorry of this chapter isn't very interesting but I just wanted to get something up for you guys. I appreciate all your reviews I seriously do and I hope you continue to rate and comment and I promise I will update more often. At least once a week if I can. I just want to put something that's worth reading up. So, anyway I appreciate your guys' patience and I hope you continue to follow the story. The next chapter will be more exciting I promise. ALSO, I'm going to be starting a new little story. I haven't decided if it'll just be a short blip or if I'll actually write more than one chapter, but it's after the book _Anna Dressed in Blood_. Anyway we'll see how that goes, but stay tuned and I'll hopefully I'll update shortly. Thank you and happy reading!


	10. Chapter 9

When Percy came to, the blackness was closing in on him. His chest caving inward, spiraling into a deep state of hopelessness, like there was no such thing as light or happiness. Gods this place was sucking him dry, feeding off the dark thoughts and expanding them until there was no room for anything else. Closing his eyes tight, he tried to ward away these feelings of despair, clutching to that thread of hope in his heart. _Gotta find Annabeth…_

His jeans made a scratching sound as he slid along the rough surface of rock and dirt, sucking in a breath at the strong ache in his back, feeling skin pulled taught and stretch, ripping. He had to bite his tongue to keep from crying out, pausing in his movement, but he knew that if he stopped completely he wouldn't try again. Pushing through, he muscled himself into a sitting position; his fingers slid along a gooey mess and Percy was sure that if there was enough light for him to see that the tips of his fingers would be colored red. _Gotta find Annabeth Gotta find Annabeth…_

He pushed himself to his feet… but too fast. Even though it was pitch black he felt himself grow dizzy with vertigo and almost crumpled to his knees once more, however on instinct his hand snatched out and grasped solid surface, allowing him to stay upright. "Gods…" He whispered, his knees shaking. Desperate for light, Percy's free hand reached down and slipped into his right pocket, finding Riptide right where it always was. He let out a sigh of relief. He didn't know what he could count on anymore and so he had half expected Riptide to be missing from its spot. Uncapping it, Riptide grew into the sword that Percy was so used to holding at his side, the celestial bronze casting that golden glow similar to that of a candle, allowing him about five feet of light in each direction and along with that a little bit of comfort and security.

Using the light to his advantage, he did a quick survey of the area, and he was right about one thing. Approximately where he had been laying was a decent size puddle of red soupy liquid. Instinctively, he looked down at himself and sure enough his shirt was stained with the same color. Grimacing, images came to his head, of Annabeth… or whatever that thing had been… and the flash of pain that had erupted in the middle of his back and the glint of a razor sharp dagger. "Oh yeah…" He winced inwardly and bent forward, bracing himself on his knee as he took in deep breaths. At least he was still alive. He almost wished he had a mirror, so he could try and see the wound… but on second thought he was okay with keeping that picture out of his head. Using Riptide, he slit his shirt about four inches from the bottom before using his hands to tear a strip all the way around: a makeshift bandage. He looped it around his waist then, making sure it settled over the split skin in his back before tying it securely. That would have to do; he'd wasted enough time. With Riptide clutched tightly in his fist, he made his first painful steps into the dark.

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When you're traveling in the dark with only a soft glow of light and everything around you looking the same no matter how far you go, you start to lose track of time. Percy only knew he'd traveled far enough that his legs protested against him and the knife wound in his back stung, as if holding him hostage and threatening that if he didn't rest soon the pain was only going to get worse. So Percy obliged. Moving to the stone wall he slid down to sit, his skin lightly coated with a thin layer of sweat. He was exhausted and even though the light from Riptide helped, that hollow sadness was beginning to creep back into his chest. How was he ever going to find Annabeth…? And if he did…how were they going to get out of this place? He groaned and pressed his fevered face into his clammy hands. "Wise girl where are you…"

Then, a sound: a high pitched shrill of pure agony in the distance. Percy's head whipped up as it reached his eardrums, sending his heart into a panicky _pitter-patter. Annabeth? _He could hope, but in truth it could be anyone… _anything, _but it was the first noise he'd heard in hours; at this point he would gladly head toward any noise that would penetrate this impeccable silence. Also, if there was any sign of life he would dash to it without a second thought. If there was any chance that he and Annabeth weren't the only ones stuck down here…

He sprang to his feet, ignoring the sting of pain that jolted from his back and reached out with spindly fingers to every inch of his body. He pushed himself to the extent, his feet carrying him as fast as they could until he could make out a light. The undulating scream still pierced the air in a constant spine-chilling shriek. Percy was so busy searching the chamber for the source of the shriek that he almost ran headlong into black waters, but was quick enough to come to a skidding stop inches from the murky liquid. The scream was louder then and when he looked up he could just make out something out of the darkness. Across the foggy waters, torches lit up a piece of land, an island, against a stone cliff that stretched up infinitely to the blackened sky. But none of these things mattered. What mattered was the figure he saw on the island; the figure was faintly lit by the glowing torches that lined the shores, but it was unmoving… or rather couldn't move because of the black chains that encircled its body and kept it restrained against the stone wall. However, that wasn't what sent Percy's heart into a twisted throbbing knot. No, it was something else that caught his eye. It was the golden wave of curls that caught the glow of the firelight so easily…

"ANNABETH!" Percy yelled to her, but if she recognized his voice, she didn't show it. Her tormented screams continued through, rising gooseflesh along Percy's body. _I have to get to her. I have to get to her!_ His eyes moved to Annabeth to the blackened water at his feet and his gut gave a squeamish lurch. The last time he had touched the water down here...

_This isn't your turf. This is Tartarus. It's tricking you, it wants you to jump in. It's tempting you… _

_ "_Well, it's working." He muttered under his breath. Seeing no other alternative, he knew he was going to have to swim the gap if he had any hopes of reaching his Annabeth. He never even thought about it not being her. It had to be. He couldn't risk leaving her there anyhow. He had to check. He had to _know. "_I'm coming Annabeth. I'm coming to get you!_" _Without another thought, he jumped.

The chill of the water took his breath away and the instant his body was enveloped by the water, he felt himself sinking. _No! _He kicked furiously. The water was just as black as it had been when he had come to hours ago, becoming discombobulated as he didn't know up from down, left from right. The scream was faint but still reached him from beneath the water in a gurgle. It was faint, but it was enough to give him headway. He kicked and parted the water with his hands, slithering through the water. On a normal basis the water would part _for _him, but this black soupy stuff that was supposed to be water slowed him down and drained him of energy. He could already feel the burn in his lungs that told him he needed to breathe. _Dad help…please…_

He spiraled downward, now aware of the intense sizzling sting in his back, feeling those black tendrils slither and dig into his back, making him gasp… except he couldn't because he was under water. He breathed in water and choked, his hands going to his neck as if that could help anything. His eyes bugged and his lungs burned as the brackish water flooded them. _No… Annabeth I… I'm sorry…_

His blood pulsed through his temples and darkness crept into his vision, his fingers grasping for one last attempt to make it to the surface.

"PERCY!" Her scream, distinct, reverberating through his sluggish brain, it acting like an adrenaline rush and snapping his eyes open. _Annabeth!_ He gritted his teeth, clenching his fists tight, focusing… _I controlled molten rock. I can control these feral waters as well. _It took every last ounce of energy that he had. He made a simple motion with his hands, a flick of the wrist in a circular motion and it was moving, sluggishly at first, like a sputtering engine before it buzzed to life. Then he shot forward, erupting out of the water and landing with a sick splat onto the sands of the island, leaving the water reaching for him with seemingly ghostly talons.

Percy broke into a fit of coughing; black liquid spilled from his lips, flowing onto the sand until it was reduced to merely a drip, his gut quivering from the taste of the sour liquid. _No time to lose._ He fought to his feet, swaying, but he managed to stay upright, staggering towards Annabeth tied to the cliff. "Anne… Annabeth!" His voice was nothing but a croak; his skin stung in the cold air of the cavern and his hair was plastered to his face. He toddled toward her, chest on fire, but none of that mattered. Annabeth was _here. _She was right there…

As he made his way closer, he saw that her eyes were shut, her face set in a grimace of pain. _What was wrong with her…_ He couldn't see any wounds that his eyes could pick out, but then again… if Tartarus was about making you suffer, then messing with Annabeth's mind would be the worst torture for her. Who knows what they were messing with in her mind, what they could be making her see…

"ANNABETH!" He yelled as he ran the last few steps to her. His hands automatically went to her shoulders, shaking her lightly as he tried to get those silvery-gray eyes to reveal themselves. "Annabeth… I'm right here… I'm right here!" She was still screaming, wriggling feebly to get free of the chains that restrained her. His eyes landed on a gleam of red that trickled from the corner of her mouth and down her chin to sink into her shirt. Blood. She must have bitten her tongue at some point… the smell of metal in the air. His heart pounded in his ears as he reached for Riptide in his pocket, uncapping it once more, the glow of the sword so near making him realize just how bad a shape she was in. Her skin was nearly white, a grayish tint beneath her eyes and the bright splotch of blood screaming on her chin. Her hair still shone a brilliant gold beneath the dirt and grime, flowing over her shoulder and ending about mid-waist. He recognized the clothes she wore even though they were in tatters: simple blue jeans, the orange Camp Half-Blood t-shirt peeking out beneath a sodden olive green zip-up sweatshirt. It was everything that was Annabeth.

He hefted Riptide, sending out a silence prayer beneath his breath as he brought it down hard with a savage yell over his head, making solid contact with the chain and with a _shink_ it was broken from all the raw emotional force Percy had put behind the blow. Sparks flew from metal against metal, but they soon faded as the chains fell from Annabeth's body which was limp and fell forward. Percy didn't hesitate. His fingers loosened around Riptide, the sword dropping from his hands and clattering to the stone below as Annabeth's quivering body fell against Percy's. "Annabeth…!" He gasped, his arms cradling her, falling to his knees with her, her hair splayed over his arm and shimmering in a waterfall along the stones. Her screams had ceased, but she was whimpering and tears he hadn't noticed were there streamed down her cheeks. He caught whispers beneath her breath… hushed letters put together to form his name. His heart lurched and he soon felt the sting of water behind his own eyes, his large calloused fingers moving and brushing her cheek, smearing dirt, blood and tears in the process. "I'm here…sweetheart I'm here. It's _Percy." _

A choked sob left his lips as he cradled her close to his chest, his hand rubbing her side as he tried to get some heat into her trembling form. _Come on wise girl, wake up… I'm here and I'll never leave you again _please _wake up! _As if she could read his mind, her eyes twitched, her breathing hitched and her eyes began to open. She looked terrified, confused, and bewildered all in one. Then her face broke into raw twisted pain and a mournful cry broke from her lips as she reached up with trembling fingers. "Nooo… No no nooooo…" She cried, the tears falling faster as she reached up and gripped the fabric of Percy's shirt in a death grip.

Percy's eyes widened in horror and he cradled her cheek in his large hand, shaking his head and leaning down close to her. "Shhhh, Annabeth it's okay… it's me… it's me…!" He gasped as the tip of his nose moved to her hair, inhaling deeply, the sweet alluring scent of lemons still there, making a quivering grin appear on his lips. "Nothing's ever going to hurt you again…" he whispered.

At his voice… his touch… Annabeth's grip tightened on his shirt her fist adding pressure, enough that he had to pull back from her. Her gray eyes stared up into the lively pool of green-blue that swirled in Percy's irises. "I-Is it you…?" She croaked, her fingers slowly unclenching from his shirt to slide upward and along his neck, tracing the strong line of his jaw and feeling the light prickle of stubble that was already beginning to grow there. Her eyes looked disbelieving, as if he would disappear before her very eyes. Her fingertips moved up into the thick dark waves of his hair, gripping for a moment before releasing, allowing them to travel along his strong brow, down his nose, and to his lips.

"It's me…" Percy whispered against the cool tip of her fingers as they traced the soft curve of his lips, his hand slowly stroking her hair out of her eyes. "It's Percy…"

Her eyes once again began to glitter with unshed tears, her lips trembling, and then as if she had never been hurt at all, she jerked forward, her arms sliding around him and then her lips were on his, fevered and urgent. Percy's chest jerked at the contact, feeling the electricity running through his body, giving him energy. His arms wound around her, pulling her taut against his chest, his lips returning the swift passion of her own as his fingers wound into her hair, their tears streaming and mixing with the others on their cheeks.

"Annabeth…Gods _Annabeth.." _Percy gasped as he pulled back for air, but his arms never left her. They would never leave her again if he could help it. He cradled her against his chest, feeling as she curled into him, her body fitting perfectly in his larger one. Her hard breathing sounded in his ears, hot against his skin as she rested her head in the crook of his neck, seeking refuge there, feeling _safe_.

"Oh Percy…" She whispered as her arms tightened around him, eyes squeezing tightly shut. "I was so worried I… I didn't k-know how many m-more times they could t-take you a-away from me." A harsh sob broke from her lips against his neck and Percy stiffened, wincing at the pain in her voice.

"Shh… it's alright. I'm here now. And nothing's going to take me away from you again." His fingers slowly stroked her back, feeling the spasm of her lungs, trying to get her to take deep breaths. "Shh…" He whispered, pressing a deliberate slow kiss to her temple. "I love you Annabeth…" Those words, so soft, so sincere, but they were the most terrifying as well. He remembered the day he thought he began to love Annabeth, yet the thought of actually telling her scared him shitless. However, all worries disintegrated as he felt her smile into the tear-slicked skin of his neck.

"I love you too, Percy…" She whispered as she gave him a slow kiss beneath his jaw, a kind of kiss that made a shiver run down his spine. A chuckle bubbled from his lips, but it stung, coming from his raw lungs. Not that he cared. He was so goddamn _happy_.

A soft raw laugh escaped from her own throat and her arms squeezed him as tight as they could, and at this Percy couldn't help the soft grunt of pain that bolted through his body, taking his breath away. Annabeth gasped and pulled back instinctively, looking at him with wide eyes. "What..? Percy are you…?" Then her eyes got the full view of what she hadn't seen before. She saw the huge blood stain on his shirt and peered over his shoulder to find the source of all the blood. She sucked in a breath and put a hand to her lips, eyes growing to large saucers. "_Percy…_you're hurt." She reached to gently touch the area of the wound when the ground began to shake.

Percy's body tensed and he frowned deeply, glancing back at the dark waters that had begun to bubble noisily, an immense inhuman screech sounding from those waters. On instinct, Percy drew Annabeth closer as he scooted back from the water, his arms staying protectively around her. "Stay close!" He yelled over the roar of the water as something large, black, and scaly burst from the black lake. It was impossibly huge and wavered at least five stories high in the air, a behemoth of a serpent. A hiss sounded from its mouth as steam curled from its nostrils and deep red glowing eyes stared directly at the two of them.

"Great timing. Really." Percy muttered as he picked up Riptide and scrambled to his feet with Annabeth, stumbling with her backward in an attempt to get some distance between them and the serpent. His body screamed at him to sit back down, but it's not like he really had a choice. Fight or die. That was the choice, and for people who knew Percy Jackson also knew that he didn't go down without a fight. "Stay behind me." He spoke lowly to Annabeth.

Then, the serpent struck.

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Hello my readers :) I told you it wouldn't be long that I updated again! I'm full of ideas and I'm anxious to write them down so that you may enjoy them as well. Anyway, I figured I'll set a deadline for myself. I think I'm going to attempt at updating at least once a week and I thought that maybe that day would be Tuesday. So expect to see updates every Tuesday from me (sometimes even more than one chapter ;3) Or if I have time I'll do it some other time during the week. But I need the deadline just to make sure I get something out to you readers out there.

ALSO, I thought I'd share with you that I acquired the fourth book The House of Hades this weekend! I've been waiting for so long it's not even funny, but I just started reading it yesterday and I hope you all have been able to get your hands on it and are enjoying as much as I am! Just had to share my happiness with you all.

So, expect to see updates on Tuesdays and I shall post again real soon. Happy readings!


	11. Chapter 10

Percy was full of adrenaline as well as a newfound anger within which would have normally sent him into a reckless charge toward danger posing in front of him at that very moment. However, he took several things into account. First off, he was injured to the extent that he knew he had to be careful; if he pushed himself beyond the limits he knew were his breaking points his condition could get fatally worse. Second, Annabeth was here with him now, and the power of all the Gods on Olympus wouldn't be enough to take her away from him again, but he knew that if the both of them were going to make it out of this alive then he had to play it safe. So, instead of a ruthless charge, Percy moved swiftly and shoved Annabeth quickly to one side while he dived for the other, very nearly getting snagged by the serpent's mighty jaws.

The force of Percy's arms propelled Annabeth enough that she was clear of the danger, but her jelly legs weren't enough to hold her up and she crumbled to the cavern floor. Bright red streaks flashed behind her eyes as her knees and palms slid on the rough stone below, tearing skin and instantly feeling the warm ooze of her blood. Nonetheless, this hardly concerned her. Instead her eyes turned upon the monster that had attacked them and Percy who was relentlessly attempting to dodge it's strikes while he sought for a weak spot.

At one point, the serpent came so close that Percy managed to swing a wild arch with Riptide, but it's tip merely skid the scales with a _shing_, the wicked edge not even leaving a mark, only a flash of sparks. Percy nearly flew back off his feet from the sheer force of the serpent's strength. He stumbled back with Riptide still clutched tightly in his fingers, his jaw working as he sought to find a chink in the serpent's armor. Everything had a weakness… nothing was undefeatable.

"Percy!" cried Annabeth who had been watching the creature meticulously while Percy had been keeping it busy. Those scales wound all the way along its head, down its back, and she guessed it continued all the way down to its tail. Which meant the only point worth of attack was…

"The eyes! Percy go for the eyes!" She shrilled, but by then she knew she made a mistake. With no weapon at hand, she was a vulnerable target and the enemy before her saw that. It's glowing red eyes turned to her and if she wasn't mistaken she thought it's grotesque mouth twisted into the hint of a smirk.

Percy saw it a split second before it happened. Everything slowed down in front of him. The serpent's muscles twitched beneath the hard glistening scales as it changed course, angling itself towards Annabeth. It started to thrust itself forward in attack towards her, it's deep hiss filling Percy's ears, but something else broke through at well. It was Annabeth's high pitched screams. Almost as if on command, Percy reacted. _The eyes. I go for the eyes. _

He had one shot, and he couldn't fail. He weighed Riptide in his hand before switching his grip, flipping the blade so that it point downward in his fist instead of upward. Then, he took a step forward, planting his feet, raising his sword behind him as if he were throwing a javelin instead of a sword, putting all his weight behind it and hefting a mighty war-cry he threw Riptide. It whistled through the air right on course, and miraculously embedded itself in one large glowing red eye. The result was immediate. The monster screeched so loud it shook the cavern walls, tossing its head from side to side as if trying to dislodge the uncomfortable sting.

Percy darted forward while the monster was distracted and snagged Annabeth by the waist, tugging her along and to a large pile of boulders, running behind them and pulling her down into a crouch. "Stay hidden!" He then forced himself back to his feet and ran out into the open, watching as the creature still thrashed about, but when it caught sight of Percy, it seemed to forget any sort of pain it was in. Instead, it looked furious. It roared and sped toward Percy with what looked like liquid fire running out of the side of its bad eye.

Percy made a split second decision. He felt the familiar weight returning to his pocket as the serpent's glinting teeth came closer and closer…. He had one final idea. If nothing on the outside was vulnerable….

"Annabeth don't panic!" Percy yelled as he ran forward to meet the serpent's gaping mouth and dove in, the Serpent's jaws closing and casting him into darkness.

"PERCY!" Annabeth screamed and abruptly stood, her shaking fingers moving to cover her mouth. "No! PERCY!" Tears streamed down her cheeks instantly as she fell to her knees, unable to support herself upright. "No… no no no no…" She was a pitiful thing on the ground and more vulnerable if that was even possible. Was this a dream as well? Was Percy finding her just another trick by Tartarus to make her go crazy? Gods but he was so solid… so _real. _Her watery eyes looked up at the serpent that seemed to almost be smirking in satisfaction and she saw the deliberate movement of its head as it swallowed.

"Uuggh!" Annabeth shrilled and buried her head in her hand while the other clutched her throat. Her chest bobbed like she wasn't getting enough air, a light sweat breaking out on her body even though she felt deathly cold. Her lips trembled as she peaked out from her fingers at the monster in front of her and it seemed to be watching her curiously, making a shudder run down her spine. "I'll kill you… I swear to the gods I will…" She whispered, but what could she possibly do? If she wanted to do anything she would have gotten up by now and charged the demon that had swallowed her boyfriend whole, but she was spent. If Percy was gone then maybe she didn't want to fight anymore. Maybe she would be happier if the serpent ate her as well…

As if it could hear her thoughts, the black snake wavered in the air almost tauntingly, weaving its way through the air toward her. She shivered and curled in on herself, hiding behind her arms, feeling the serpent come so close that she thought she could feel its shot rank breath on her skin. She whimpered and tried to make herself as small as possible, but with the way her body was trembling it probably would have found her anyway.

Just when she thought it was about to take a bite of her, she sensed it draw back which tempted her to sneak another peek. It looked confused, its red eyes staring ahead like it was listening meticulously to something she couldn't hear. Then it twitched and it threw its head back in anguish. It twisted about, crying out in a way that almost seemed desperate. Annabeth watched with a mixed horror and curiosity as it drew farther away from her as it was too distracted with an unknown pain to worry about her. Annabeth's eyes have been playing so many tricks on her in the past… well… whatever amount of time has passed, that she didn't know if the dust was real that started to come off of the serpent. It was disintegrating into that golden dust that all monsters did when they died in the mortal realm, and apparently that's what they did here as well... but that meant the serpent was dying. How was it dying?

Annabeth drew her sleeve across her tear-stained face as she scrambled to her knees, watching with a sort of fascination as the remaining bit of the serpent sunk into the water without a trace except for a few bubbles rising to the surface. She stared in stunned silence as her body grew numb with the cold.

Then, the water began to bubble more frantically as it had before, a sort of glow appearing beneath the surface, and at first Annabeth slid away in fear that it was one of the serpent's angry friends, but this glow was different. It was golden, a cloud of light in the dark that pulsed brighter and brighter until something erupted from the depths of those wicked black waters. She cringed back and hid behind the long waves of her hair, but when she heard something impact the sandy shores of the island she glanced that way through the strands of her golden curls, seeing it wasn't much bigger than she was. In fact, it was a person, with those familiar dark locks of hair and luminous green eyes that she could see glittering in the dark.

"Percy!" She gasped and scrambled to her feet despite her weakened state. Percy was on his knees, drenched as he just came from the water and he looked as pale as a ghost. He mustn't have had the strength to work his magic and stay dry beneath the surface of the water. She hurried to him and collapsed at his side, throwing her arms around him and nearly knocking him over and back into the water that lapped dangerously at the shore. A soft sob escaped her lips as she attempted to keep any more tears from falling. "Gods Percy you're okay…" She whispered, feeling his own arms go around her, shaking and cold, but they were _his_ arms and that was enough for her.

"I'm… I-I-I'm okay…" Percy whispered, his chest quaking inside of him. That had been one of the stupidest things he's ever done… and the nastiest. Not to mention heading back into the water was equally awful. He'd rather not ever have to touch it again. He leaned carefully into Annabeth and closed his heavy-lidded eyes as he waited for his strength to return. He pulled back slowly after a moment and allowed his eyes to wander over her, searching. "You aren't hurt are you?" He asked as the color already began to return to his cheeks, sliding his fingers gently up and brushing them against the chilled skin of her cheeks.

"No… I'm… I'm f-" her voice slowly faded as well as her vision; every ounce of strength was depleted and she slumped against Percy who held her up easily, but his eyes widened in fright.

"Annabeth.. Annabeth?!" He shook her gently in an attempt to wake her, but she refused. He pulled her taut against his chest and felt the fluttering of her panicking heart as he looked around frantically. They were both exhausted and they needed to rest for the night, so what better place to camp out than the site of the most frequent monster attack?

He rose and headed over to the cover of the large boulders he had placed Annabeth during the fight and found it would be the most suitable spot for shelter. Glancing down to Annabeth, she was a mere rag doll in his arms, but he handled her with care and set her down on the ground, her back supported by a large boulder and therefore keeping her upright. "I got this, Wise girl. Just rest… and this time I'll be here when you wake up. I promise." He slowly brushed back some of her blond curls, pressing a kiss to her forehead before parting from her and getting to work.

* * *

_It was night time and the stars shone brightly overhead with the full moon brilliantly lit just for the two of them. Percy was at her side with his fingers gently clasped in her own and both their eyes trained on the sky. "They're so beautiful tonight." Annabeth's lips were constantly upturned in that radiant smile that Percy loved so very much._

"_They are." He spoke simply. His fingers slowly tightened on hers and she heard the scratch of the sand granules as he scooted closer to her. She soon felt his strong warm arms wrap around her middle and pull her back against his hard chest. She sighed softly and leaned back into him, resting her head in the crook of his neck before pressing a gentle kiss to the sight of his thumping pulse. She felt him inhale a quick breath and she couldn't help the smile that came to her lips. When she was with him like this, she could sense every little thing he did whether it was the definite speeding of his heart, the goose-bumps rising on his skin, or the light hitch of his breath. It was times like this when she never felt more alive. _

_Percy made a soft rumble of a chuckle in his chest and tightened his arms around her; his head lightly nudged her own affectionately before pressing a slow kiss to her temple. "Remind me never to leave your side again, wise girl." He murmured as he buried his nose in the golden halo of her curls. _

_ Annabeth let out a soft giggle and squirmed in her spot, curling into him with her arms gently overlapping his own across her torso. "Nothing could ever take you away from me again, Seaweed Brain." Pulling back slowly from him, her silver intelligent eyes moved to his lively green ones as her body slowly twisted in his arms enabling her to face him. She reached up and slowly brushed his cheek with the back of her soft delicate fingers while she leaned up and spoke with her warm sweet breath against his ear. "Nothing." _

_ She then felt the sweetness of his lips against hers, the softest embrace that made a deep shiver run down her spine and instantly left her needing more. She added pressure behind her lips as well as wrapping her limbs around him, strengthening the connection between them. She felt the familiar heat sensation sizzling inside her, that feeling of desperation in needing him as close as she could get him. Her legs tightened around him, pressing her torso taut against him as she slowly pulled her lips back from his. Both their eyes held such intensity that's never been seen in either of them. _

_ "Percy…" She whispered softly as her fingers slowly reached up to trace his hard features; her heart swelled in her chest with the amount of love she held for him. Percy's lips tilted upward in that boyish grin that sent her heart a pitter pattering. His head slowly lowered to hers then, ducking lower and making contact with her neck. With a ghostly touch his lips brushed her skin, extracting a soft sound of pleasure from her lips as they inched upward and finally to her ear. He gave it a teasing nip, his breath slightly labored and hot on her skin before he started to speak…_

_ "It isn't over. In fact it's far from over." _

_ What? _

_ That wasn't Percy's voice. It wasn't Percy's voice! She tried to break away fast but the strong arms that surrounded her squeezed tighter, nearly forcing out all the air from her lungs, making her gasp for breath. She broke her eyes open, her vision swimming, but it was clear enough to see that she was no longer in the arms of _her_ Percy. His skin had turned a sickly gray, eyes glowing red with lips that were constantly pulled back in a twisted smirk to reveal a mouth full of wicked razor teeth. Annabeth would have screamed if she had air available in her lungs. Instead she only choked and stared with shocked horror. _

_ "What? Am I not pretty enough for you?" He cackled, his voice like nails on a chalkboard, high and squeaky. A tremor ran through her and she made one last desperate attempt at escape, flailing in hopes to wriggle free, but non-Percy was strong and snatched her wrists, but not before her nails caught his chilled sallow skin, tearing three long nasty gashes on his right cheek. She heard him screech and howl in pain, but his fingers never let go of her wrists. In fact, he tightened his grip, and with anger glowing in his eyes he roughly jerked her backward, flattening her back into the dirt and pinning her hands above her head. The mischievous smirk on his lips held his triumph as his body weighted hers to the ground. She was pinned; she had nowhere to go, and she knew that she had been defeated. _

_ "Please…. Percy…" Tears streaked down her cheeks. Even when she thought they were safe, they weren't. They was no such thing as a safe place. Nowhere…_

_ The creature cackled once more, throwing its head back dramatically before his eyes met hers once more. "If I were merciful I'd end you now. It would be less painful than what you're going endure, Annabeth Chase." _

_ She still had to work to take a breath in and his words didn't make it any easier. "W-what do you mean?" _

_ Smirking, the demon slowly lowered itself over her, his eyes nearly a couple inches from hers, whispering as if it were a secret. "You will lose people you love. It will be the sacrifice that needs to be made in order to save the world. So when the time comes… what will you do? Will you save a few for the sake of your sanity? Or will you be the hero and sacrifice those choice few to save millions?" _

_ It couldn't be true. What did this thing know about her fate? It didn't know anything… in fact wasn't this all just a figment of her imagination? She struggled and snarled, mad that tears still ran down her cheeks. "There's always a way around it. There are always more paths. And I don't see why I have to choose either of your shitty ones." She spat in its face. The creature grimaced and jerked his head to the side as if he had been slapped, but slowly returned his gaze back to yours and it wasn't happy. Another twisted smirk appeared on his lips as one of his fingers released her wrist, reaching up to slowly brush a bunch of golden hair from her eyes. _

_ "Oh but my dear, you will soon find out that you have no other options. As you see, I have you quite tied up, and it won't be long before you have to make the decision." Long grotesque fingers traveled from the delicate features of her face to her neck where those fingers stroke like a cobra and wrapped around her small windpipe, squeeeezing…._

_ "Very, very soon... Annabeth….. Annabeth…." _

* * *

"…Annabeth… ANNABETH!"

Her eyes tore through her eyelids as she heard the familiar voice enter her ears instead of the one from her dreams. She gasped and bolted upright, her back sore from lying on the rough stone, making her wince. Percy was right there with her then; his hands instantly at her shoulders to usher her down onto her back once more. "Shh… it's alright now. You're okay…" His eyes held much concern as he looked down at her while his large calloused fingers brushed her cheekbone.

"Y-you… you're here…" She whispered as if she could hardly believe it. With that weird dream… she figured that whole scheme with the rescuing and the serpent had just been another sad attempt from Tartarus to break her sanity, but Percy had broken through first.

Percy nodded quickly as his fingers stroked her features as if anxious to make her realize that he was indeed real. "I am here. And I'll never leave you again." Percy's expression held deep concern for his wise girl, no hint of a smile playing on his lips now. She'd hardly ever seen Percy appear so serious. "You were screaming.. .in your sleep." He murmured softly and as Annabeth's eyes finally adjusted to the dark light she could make out four scratches on his cheek that were slowly _drip drop_ _dripping_ blood. She glanced to her nails then, barely seeing the red tint beneath her fingernails from the glow of the firelight, but it was there and she gasped softly after realizing….

"Did I… I-I'm sorry I didn't …"

"Shhh…" Percy urged once more as his hand slowly wandered down to her own and twined his fingers with hers securely. She shivered lightly at the contact as it was what she had wanted for so long… a few hours ago when she was alone she would have done anything to have him by her side again and now here he was, comforting her from a bad dream. Her fingers squeezed his desperately; her eyes were wide-innocent and childlike- as she tugged on his arm gently, ushering Percy down beside her. His tired eyes wrinkled slightly as he smiled and obliged, moving down beside her and tucking her against his side.

"I missed you." Her voice broke on the words as her arms went around him tightly, burrowing her face into his warm hard chest. "I thought I… I-I thought I had lost you. More than once." She struggled to keep burning tears back. Of course she knew she loved Percy, but she was almost amazed how terrifying the thought of losing Percy was to her. If she had to witness his death down here and Tartarus… well… she figured she wouldn't be too far behind him as long as she had her dagger at her side. Life without Percy… she didn't think it was livable.

"You didn't. I'm here Annabeth, and I always will be. Don't worry about me."

He sounded so sure of himself that Annabeth almost believed him, but those words still echoed in her mind: _you must make the sacrifice. _She choked on air and burrowed farther against Percy's chest as his arms constricted around her.

"Annabeth…" He had never seen her so broken down and it terrified him that Tartarus may actually be getting to her. She was usually so strong and collected and everything that Percy thought he wasn't. She was his stable ground, but right now she was as crumbly as sand falling through fingertips. What had she seen that had changed her so dramatically? What had finally broken her psychological strength? "…what happened? Talk to me…"

"I _can't_." She gasped, shutting her eyes as if it would shut out everything she was afraid of. "_Please_ don't make me… I don't want to think about it anymore." Her voice trembled and she sounded desperate to forget what she had seen.

"I… I won't. I'm sorry." Percy instead pulled her into his lap and hugged her against his chest; his hands fluidly moved up and down her arms in an attempt to calm the rapid beating of her heart against his chest. "It'll be okay though, Annabeth. I promise you… Nico, Leo, Hazel, Piper, Jason… they'll be there waiting for us at the doors. They won't let us down and we can't let them down either." His fingers found their way beneath her chin then, carefully tilting her face up to his and the watery mess of the tears combined with the look of hopelessness in her eyes was enough to break his heart. "We can't stop fighting. Not when we've gotten this far. Not after I just found you again." His head slowly dropped to hers, resting against her curls and his voice softening. "I'm determined to get you out of here. And with you by my side, we'll be unstoppable, just don't give up yet, Annabeth. _Please._"

Annabeth's lips trembled at his words and her heart swelled in her chest, nuzzling the side of her face gently against his own. "I won't Percy… with you here that's all the incentive I need." She still had a growing sense of dread in the center of her gut, but she would continue on. After all, it was the least she could do after he had made the sacrifice of falling into Tartarus with her so she didn't have to be alone. She was honestly amazed how much Percy has changed since she first met him. Back then, he was the troubled goofy boy with no brains that she figured was going to be the doom of the world. Instead, he had become what he was now: a courageous, strong, kind-hearted, mature-but still kind of goofy- young man. He was the young man that she has come to love with her whole heart. He was a hero. He was her hero.

"That's my wise girl." Percy smiled softly and pressed a soft kiss to her forehead. Taking a deep breath, his body relaxed and he pulled her flush against his chest in an attempt to keep her warm.

"Are you still hurt?" Annabeth suddenly asked as she remembered the wound she had seen on his back, the dagger wound. "Percy that probably needs to be cleaned and bound it could get infected-"

"Annabeth." He stopped her, pulling back slightly and brushing back her hair from her eyes. "It's fine. I took care of it already. There's not anything else you could possibly do for it, I promise. You just need to rest. You're starting to look like a walking gho-" He stopped himself and cleared his throat, starting again, "please just try to sleep. You need to gain your strength back. I'll keep watch."

Annabeth's eyes met his own and they held such grim determination that for once she decided not to argue as she figured it would be pointless. "Fine." She settled back down against Percy with troubled eyes, but before closing them she leaned up and gently pecked his lips, seeing the blush of his cheeks as she did so which got her smiling as she curled into his form. Her seaweed brain was such a dork. "Wake me up in a couple hours or so." She demanded and Percy couldn't help the chuckle that escaped his lips.

"I won't." He reassured.

She sputtered a laugh and shook her head, closing her eyes and eventually falling asleep to the soothing strokes of Percy's fingers through her hair. This time there were no dreams, just dark well-deserved rest.

* * *

Hello my readers :) I'm sorry, I earn an F- for posting this late. However it is longer so I hope the extra wait was worth it. I just wanted to take the time to also say that I enjoy your comments I really do. I read every one of them and I appreciate the time to put into commenting on the story. Anyway, just a short thank you. I shall post again real soon and I hope you continue to enjoy the story!


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